Walkway update.

Got a chance to take a new picture of the walkway at a local school that is using a Smart pump to water and feed 18 hanging baskets along the covered walkway to the assembly hall.

Every day they are looking more spectacular and there is nothing they need to do to look after them just pick off the dead flowers and enjoy.

Re potting

One of my Hanging Basket had come to the end of it flowering, I know I could have trimmed it and got a second flowering but I need to keep them fresh for my Mobile display.
What did amaze me was the root structure and how it had forced it's way into every nook and cranny.
So I have captured it so you can see, the lesson is when re potting a hanging basket take the time to unscrew the base and clean out the Smart - Valve area to make sure you get trouble free growing.
This particular basket I used Perlite in the bottom cavity but with the new planting I have used rock wool it will be interesting to see if there is a difference.

You can see how the roots force there way through.

Cleaned out ready to assemble

Rock wool in the base then the potting mix.

I have also replanted one of my Hydrotrays with Pansy and Lobelia, there are some stunning Pansy's available these days and I love their happy faces. I am thinking of putting the whole thing into a wooden planter I think that would look great.

Pansy and Lobilia

A Good Queensland Grow House

I have just had the chance to get a couple of photos of a grow house that an Autopot user has made for them self, the best part is they have applied all the basic things that make growing easy here in the Queensland climate. They have use the WHITE 50% Horticulture cloth ( NOT GREEN) which creates a great light but keeps that midday burn under control. One side has a clear plastic covering which is actually a tarp that you can buy, it is 4x3 meters and is very well priced this gives a bench area that is protected from the rain and is a little warmer for growing the Tomatoes all year round etc. The other side is open which allows good ventilation as well as pollination
The current planting are doing extremely well, the reason they moved to Hydro Gardening was because of continuous wet ground. under the benches are several pots of herbs etc which are feed manually when the gravity tank is refiled this makes sense keeping the good Hydrotrays for main crops.

This white cloth produces great light

Good ventilation

One side with the strong almost clear  plastic tarp.

A New Chalange

I thought I would grow a real live Orchid in My OKID Pot. Another brilliant invention from AUTOPOT SYSTEMS. I have been displaying this pot at my Mobile workshops empty so thought it would be more meaningful if people could see an Orchid thriving with their own eyes because some of the Orchid fans have some very set ideas and like everything with the Autopot system it bucks the normal thats why I love it so much. This briliant pot takes care of all the water and nutrient needs and may never need to be repotted for up to 10 years try telling that to an Orchid Buff. If you want to know more call me or check out Orchid growing in the Autopot web site www.autopot.com.au 

I have use a lovely Cymbidium already flowering. YES I repotted even though it was flowering and I had to trim back the rootball to make it fit and according to every thing on the net thats a NO NO.
I have used rockwool in the cavity of the inersleave as suggested in the instructions that come with all the Autopot products.

The pot holds 3lts of water released through the Smart Valve and I have included 3ml of Autopot high performance plant food in total. I will keep you posted on its progress.

Ginger and Autopot

You may remember a little time back I acquired a couple of pots of Thji Green Ginger from the Nursery they where busting out of there pot so I replanted into the 10in double Hydrotray System. Well as the have died of for the winter  I have lifted them to see what sort of results I have achieve to date.

Zingiber Officinale Thji Green Ginger

Ginger drying in the Sun.

I will replant in the spring but this time I will use a smaller pot, I feel they need to be keep slightly under pressure to multiply better. Only one way to find out.

June roundup

With the shortest day behind us the days can only get better for gardening here is a round up of a few new and old plantings.

Some of the 18 baskets on a school walkway starting to flower

New planting of green beans

Cascading Petunia in hanging  basket.

Rainbow spin age in widow box 

Cascading Petunia

New planting of broccoli

Roma Tomatoes

A Pot variety of Tomato

This is the dwarf pot tomato not so little

A cutting from the Roma Tomato

If you let the lateral that you normally pinch out grow to about 100cm then cut with a sharp blade dip in rooting hormone and make a hole with a dribble then plant, don't push it into the ground or you will damage the edge in this case I just used normal potting mix and watered from the top with Nutrient mix
I have just replanted into the Hydrotray as a replacement I have several other waiting to plant out.

A quick update.

With 3 sunny days in a row things are growing great.
Had 3 or 4 Kifla potatoes in the pantry that started to sprout so brought a floppy plastic tub drilled a few holes in it and put all my old potting mix that I had from a previous planting and popped in the spuds.
Each time I refill my Nutrient tanks I pour a little by hand on the potatoes and as you can see they are doing fine along with a few other new plantings which are connected to the Autopot system.

Kifla potatoes in tub.

Mixed Herbs in  Window box

                          Ivy Geranium's ready to burst into flower

                 Autumn sunlight bouncing of my Pink Pearl Tomatoes